Chapter 398: Escape

The goblin’s eyes snapped open. His mouth widened, but Kael’s grip prevented the cry from escaping. Small hands caught uselessly against the gauntlet.

Kael tightened his fingers.

A sharp crack sounded beside the bed. The king’s body twitched once beneath the blanket, then went slack.

Kael held him for another moment before releasing his grip. No spell activated, and no desperate fight followed. The only interruption came from the notification appearing before his eyes.

[HIGH-VALUE TARGET ELIMINATED]

[PRIMARY OBJECTIVE COMPLETE]

[Target Identity Confirmed: Goblin King]

[WARNING]

The death of the Goblin King has not yet been discovered.

Upon discovery of the corpse, hostile awareness will immediately increase to MAXIMUM.

The following reinforcements may be deployed:

Elite Hobgoblin Guard Units Orc Shock Troops Ogre Enforcers Royal Hunters Additional hostile forces based on escalation conditions

[EXFILTRATION OBJECTIVE UPDATED]

Leave the city perimeter before the death of the Goblin King is discovered.

Failure to do so will dramatically increase exfiltration difficulty.

Kael read the warning, then looked down at the corpse.

"Wonderful. Now you’re a problem even when you’re dead."

He closed the king’s eyes and adjusted the body upon the mattress. The pillow supported his head, and Kael drew the blanket high enough to cover his neck. From the doorway, he looked asleep.

It would not survive a close examination, but Kael only needed someone to decide against disturbing him.

"That will have to do," he muttered, stepping away from the bed.

He checked the corridor before slipping out and closed the door quietly behind him.

Downstairs, smoke had begun drifting visibly through the halls. More goblins had arrived, adding their voices to the confusion. Servants ran with buckets while guards tried to clear space for them, and several soldiers were now moving toward the concealed passages.

Someone had apparently worked out where the fire had started.

Kael increased his pace.

He reached the royal portrait, opened it, and slipped inside before anyone turned into the corridor. Once the painting closed behind him, he forced himself through the cramped stretch as quickly as his shoulders allowed.

Smoke hung beneath the ceiling. He kept his head low until he reached the opening into the larger passage, then dropped down and began running.

His boots struck stone, dirt, and stone again as the tunnel carried him beyond the palace foundations. Internal energy reinforced his legs, allowing him to cover the distance quickly despite the sections where the ceiling forced him to hunch.

At each junction, he checked the map and followed the route he had shown the prisoners. The exit remained ahead, somewhere beyond the city walls.

Several minutes passed before voices reached him.

Kael slowed as he rounded a bend, but the captives reacted before he could speak. A woman cried out, and a man carrying an injured prisoner stumbled backward, nearly losing his grip.

Kael released Presence and raised one hand.

"It’s me. Keep hold of him."

Recognition spread unevenly through the group. Some relaxed at the sound of his voice. Others continued staring at the shadows curling around his armor.

Fair enough. He probably looked like something sent to drag them back.

The woman who had questioned him earlier stepped forward. "What happened? We heard you running."

Kael looked over the captives before answering. They had made better progress than he expected, but exhaustion had begun catching up with them. An elderly man sat against the wall, unable to rise. Two women supported a third between them, their own knees trembling beneath the burden.

"Nothing is behind me yet. Give me the people who can’t keep walking."

The woman glanced at the prisoners, then back at him. "You can’t carry all of them."

"I can carry enough to get everyone moving again. Help me lift him."

Kael crouched beside the elderly man. After a moment’s hesitation, two prisoners helped settle him across Kael’s shoulder. He secured him with one forearm, then lifted the wounded elf with his other arm.

The weight barely mattered. Keeping both of them supported without hurting them required more attention.

A third prisoner tried to straighten and almost fell. Kael turned his side toward her.

"Hold on to my coat. I’ll keep pace with you."

She caught the heavy material in both hands, and the group began moving again. With the worst burdens taken from them, the other captives could help those who only needed support.

Kael remained near the rear, listening between their footsteps for anything approaching from the palace.

The woman from earlier walked beside him for several moments before speaking.

"You went back," she said. "After getting us out, you disappeared toward the prison. What took you so long?"

"I had something to finish." Kael adjusted the man across his shoulder. "I killed the goblin king."

She stopped so abruptly that he took another three steps before noticing.

Several other prisoners had heard him. They stared as well, momentarily forgetting to keep moving.

Kael glanced back. "It worked. We can discuss it outside."

"You killed the king?" The woman looked toward the darkness behind them. "The king of this city?"

"How many goblin kings do you think live in that palace?" He nodded toward the passage ahead. "Please keep walking. We don’t have much time."

Her mouth opened, but whatever she intended to say failed to emerge. She hurried after him instead, looking back once more before lowering her voice.

"When they discover him, they’ll close the city."

"They will do considerably more than that. We could have hobgoblins, orcs, ogres, and royal hunters looking for us."

The expressions around him grew steadily worse.

Kael realized he was doing a poor job of reassuring anyone.

"They haven’t found him yet," he added. "That is why we need to keep moving."

This time, nobody stopped to ask another question. The captives tightened their grips upon one another and pressed farther down the passage, while Kael followed with the two injured prisoners held securely against him.

Smoke continued spreading through the tunnels behind them. Ahead, the route stretched toward the forest, with the city perimeter still waiting on his map.

Somewhere above, a dead king lay tucked beneath his blankets while half the palace tried to extinguish a fire.

Kael adjusted his hold and kept walking. For a stealth mission, things were going surprisingly well so far.